Tag: cartoons

Categories
cartoon family gag cartoon single panel cartoon webcomic

Cartoon: Act your Age

Whoever first gave the advice to act your age had no clue what they were talking about. I have seen mature seven-year-olds and immature seventy-year-olds. Who really sets up how someone should act at a certain age anyway?

Cartoon of an old man talking to a boy. The man says, "Anyone who tells you to act your age is a booger head!"

Generally, when someone gives this advice, they are telling the person to stop acting silly. Either that or a person is failing to take responsibility for their actions. There is a big difference between being childish and childlike.

Childishness and Responsibility

When I worked for an Arizona call center, I found it remarkable when young women would complain that their boyfriends or husbands were home all day playing video games while they worked. I believe that sort of immaturity has to be addressed with tough love. Any able-bodied person should work in whatever way they are able to.

That said, I knew how it felt to look for work and not find something that complimented my abilities. Here I was a guy with a graduate degree and working in a call center. Before that, I had worked at a grocery to pay bills while I looked for something that aligned with my skills.

I knew the responsible thing to do was work in some way while I found something better. Every adult can do something while they work to improve their situation. Video games and surfing the web do not count.

On the contrary, workers can be quite immature too. This article on bad habits that make you look immature at work is helpful. Gossiping and being unhelpful are two key bad qualities. Let’s be professional when we’re on the job!

Childish vs. Childlike

To be creative, we need to be childlike. A sense of wonder combined with playfulness and a willingness to look at things differently is essential. We all need to be a little childlike to embrace change and encourage innovation.

Also, to have fun, we need to be a little childlike. The best times on vacation is when adults let go with their kids and have a blast. That is why the commercials when kids are acting like adults while the parents are being silly are so effective.

This Advice can be quite subjective. I have often wondered if I’ve given the correct advice to my kids. What is the correct advice anyway? Yelling “Boogerhead!” and running away rarely works. How would I know? Don’t ask.

Editor’s Note: I originally published this blog on October 6, 2015. I revamped and updated it for timeliness and comprehensiveness.

Categories
Agriculture Cartoons animal cartoons cartoon gag cartoon single panel cartoon webcomic

GPS Sheep Tracking

This cartoon is a good example of how technology has changed. When I first drew this, smartphones were just beginning to replace standalone GPS units. Who would have thought that today, there is such a thing as GPS sheep tracking?

Cartoon of two sheep

Today, we can track anything, including livestock. Radiofrequency identification (RFID) technology is small enough, we can keep track of and identify an entire flock without leaving the house.

Continue reading “GPS Sheep Tracking”
Categories
Adobe Illustrator Business cartoon children cartoons gag cartoon single panel cartoon webcomic

An Open Door Policy

What does an open-door policy do, exactly? I do have one at my work. There are times when I need to close the door for a meeting or to avoid interruptions. And I would say, for the most part, it has been good. But is it always the best policy?

“An open-door policy doesn’t do much for a closed mind.”

Bob Nelson
Cartoon of two boys at a front door

When I drew this cartoon, My office was a cubicle. Every cubicle worker knows the door is always open when there is no door. Interruptions are the norm. And it has changed the workplace dramatically. If a manager keeps the door closed, they are seen as aloof and unapproachable.

Continue reading “An Open Door Policy”
Categories
motivation

Why is it Important to Have a Sense of Humor?

Erma Bombeck was born 95 years ago today in 1927. She was a writer that had a great wit and style. One of her quotes goes right to why it is important to have a sense of humor.

“When humor goes, there goes civilization.”
Erma Bombeck

Erma Bombeck Quotes. BrainyQuote.com, BrainyMedia Inc, 2022. https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/erma_bombeck_131317, accessed February 21, 2022.

A few years ago, the editor at a blog I write and draw cartoons for interviewed me about why I contribute. One quote from that article sums it up:

“The one thing I love about humor, if you’re dealing with a serious topic, humor can ease the blow.”

Kevin Spear
Photo of me drawing on a light table.

Yes, I just quoted myself. No, I don’t think I’m that important. On the contrary, the nice thing about quoting yourself is that it is easy to verify the source!

The Healing Power of Humor

Humor is important because it can break the tension in a situation. It can bring healing when we are able to see there is something in a tragedy that we can laugh about. When we feel stuck by a malady, or by circumstances out of our control, humor has great power to ease the blow and be a healing balm.

I may not know what your situation is or what you have experienced. In fact, I may not have had as challenging of a situation as you have had. But one thing we can all agree on is that we have all experienced tragedy, heartache, and situations that have broken other people.

How do some go one while others break under the pressure? I have observed that those with strong faith and a strong sense of humor can make it while others cannot.

Humor is not some frivolous act. It can get us through a lot. As Erma said, humor is important because civilization needs it to survive. We need it. I am going for the trifecta and adding a third quote for today.

“Humor is a prelude to faith, and laughter is the beginning of prayer.”

― Reinhold Niebuhr

Categories
writing

What About You, Quiet Guy?

"What About You, Quiet Guy?"

I have no problem admitting it. I’m one of the quiet guys. I wouldn’t call myself, the strong silent type, but I can definitely be the silent, observant one.

The other night, my wife and I were out with friends. We were having a good time cutting up and catching up on the lives of kids and grandkids. The waitress came over to get our orders. When it was my turn, she said, “And what about you, Quiet Guy?”

I thought that was quite amusing, yet it took me by surprise. It’s not that I didn’t think the moniker fit. Anyone who has known me can confirm that I’m rarely the boisterous one in a group. Well, that is until I get in front of a group and I can command attention! I love being the loud one when I teach or act. It’s partly because it takes anyone who knows me by surprise.

What surprised me was that she knew that trait about me after a very short time. Plus, I thought I was far from quiet. I was involved in my friends’ conversations and I was participating. However, to an outside observer, I was the quiet one in the group.

Quiet Kid

There was a time when that would have bothered me. I wanted to be the class clown. But I didn’t have the courage and I would have been mortified if it got back to my parents that I disrupted a class. It was much safer to live vicariously through the true class clown.

So instead of being known as the loud student, I was the kid who doodled on the back of assignments and stared out the window. I was the kid that tried to absorb the details of a story and think about what would happen if one detail was different.

Eventually, that led me to be the class cartoonist. I loved seeing my work in print. I noticed that while the class clown got sent to the office, teachers and professors considered the class cartoonist a journalist. What? You could make a living at this?

I have made a good living at it over the years. But for the last several years, I ventured more into writing and less into illustrations and cartoons.

The Quiet Guy

I have plenty to say, but that doesn’t mean I want to be the talker. I like to let my fingers do the talking. And frankly, it’s more fun to get my ideas out on a page and massage them a bit. It is too easy to say something that I may regret later. A flippant comment can wound. Plus, I can edit my written text to say what I want it to. There is value in thinking and considering what I want to say before it goes out to the world.

Maybe I am not always the most talkative guy in the room, but that doesn’t mean I have little to say. Today, I am thanking a waitress for reminding me of the value of the spoken and written word.